A video conference session is a way for physically separated participants to electronically communicate with each other using both audio and video. Each participant of a particular video conference session can hear, view, and provide audio and/or video to other participants of the same conference session in real time by way of a telecommunication portal (e.g., a desk top computer, a laptop computer, a videophone, a handheld device such as a smart phone or tablet, etc.). Some participants may actively participate in the conference session by contributing to a conversation, while other participants may passively participate by only viewing and/or listening to the conversation.
During a video conference session, a situation may arise where a participant that is only passively participating (e.g., not actively contributing to a conversation of the session) does not want to be heard and/or seen by other participants of the conference session. For example, the passive participant may need to perform a task unrelated to the conference session (e.g., answer a phone call or compose an email) or to momentarily leave the conference session. At the same time, the passive participant may not wish to disrupt the conference session with performance of the task or with an interruption in video signal associated with the exodus. Although some video conferencing systems may allow the passive participant to mute audio recording of themselves (e.g., when the passive participant activates an audio-mute feature), a video signal of the passive participant is nevertheless presented to the other conference participants.
Recently, video conferencing technology has been developed that allows for virtual muting of video signals from the passive participant. In particular, when the passive participant activates a corresponding mute feature, virtual video is transmitted from a server to the screens of the other participants in the conference session, instead of live video. The virtual video includes video clips of the passive participant that were previously recorded and stored on the server. The virtual video continually transitions between video clips so as to avoid repeating the same short video clip. An indication of the virtual muting being active is shown to the passive participant, making the passive participant aware of the activated status of the feature.
Although current video conferencing technology may allow for virtual muting of video signals from a passive participant, the technology may still be less than optimal. For example, continuous transmission of the virtual video from the server may require significant network bandwidth. In addition, a weak network signal could cause interruptions in the transmission of the virtual video.